Groundwork Somerville and Arts at the Armory are launching co-management of the Somerville Winter Farmers Market! We are very excited to be bringing together amazing local food producers each Saturday at the Somerville Armory, December 2nd through April 14th.

After several successful years, Relish Management sought to hand off market leadership to local nonprofits with a mission to ensure healthy, fresh, affordable food options in Somerville. We’re excited to step into this role and create a market space not only for finding delicious food, but also to gather as a community. Come by, support your local growers and food producers, and let us know what you’d like to see at the market.

Also, a big shout out to Community Credit Union, who have provided essential support to the market as we launch this new season!

]]>Groundwork Somervillehttp://www.groundworksomerville.org/?p=73102017-11-27T22:26:38Z2017-11-27T22:21:18ZContinued]]>Groundwork has been getting our hands dirty! 10,000 trees have been planted to date as part of an effort to improve environmental conditions in former industrial cities across the state of Massachusetts. “Gateways cities” such as Lynn, Lawrence and Brockton often suffer from significant economic and environmental challenges such as the urban heat island effect, polluted storm water run off and declining property values and tax base. This tree-planting program is designed to increase the density of urban tree canopies and use the trees’ natural capacity to clean the air and water and improve the community’s appearance. Groundwork has played a critical roll in getting trees in the ground by working in the neighborhoods, knocking on doors and partnering with local neighborhood and non-profit groups.

Support from Governor Baker, State Senator McGee, and State Rep Cahill (pictured here, planting one of the 10,000 trees), has been essential to the success of this program. We are excited to continue the effort.

Helen Macdonald wrote an article for the New York Times entitled, “Why Do We Feed Wild Animals?” In it, Macdonald explores why we choose birds to feed over other animals, what it does for us psychologically, and whether this act is helping or hurting the animals. She argues that it helps us, but hurts them. This article has raised an old question within the community of bird-lovers: is it okay to feed the birds?

While the winter survival rates for birds are increased by feeders, with it comes some concerns. Some researchers worry that disease is spread through the use of bird feeders due to concentrated amounts of feathers and excrement. Another concern is that the birds will become too accustomed to eating from feeders, which will encourage them to stop foraging, and ultimately become dependent on an artificial food source, one that may not always be there. Winter feeding particularly encourages untimely breeding, which leads to hatchlings being born during the winter instead of in the spring where there’s an abundance of insects for them to eat. This leads, not only frail hatchlings, but malnourished adult birds as well. The food necessary for a balanced diet varies between species, and many cannot stay healthy on feeder food alone.

Despite these concerns, more research is needed in order to gain an exhaustive and indubitable understanding of the long-term effects bird feeders will have on the welfare of birds and our ecosystem. Although many bird enthusiasts advocate against the use of feeders, more than 40 percent of U.S. homes remain unconvinced of the risks and are not yet ready to give up the practice. Willi Evans Galloway wrote an article this November titled Why It’s So Important to Feed Your Backyard Birds This Winter. The article encourages gardeners keep feeding birds this winter despite the split jury, and it includes tips on how to make your winter bird feeder more helpful. Galloway and other bird enthusiasts urge those who choose to still use bird feeders to be sure to maintain it properly with weekly washes and by purchasing diverse bird food (switch out those sunflower seeds for something with a bit more sustenance!).

If you haven’t made up your mind, don’t worry! There’s lots of ways you can attract birds to your yard! Whether in addition to or in lieu of a feeder, you can also attract birds with bird baths, wildlife brush piles, choosing plants for your garden that will encourage foraging, and leaving your yard’s fallen leaves where they lay. Happy Birding!

Looking to make your backyard a little more friendly to nature’s creatures? With little more than some fallen branches and logs, you can provide shelter for birds, rabbits, dragonflies, and many other animals right in your own yard!

Materials:

Branches, Logs, Stones, seeds/bulbs

Choosing your Spot:

If you have a garden, you can choose to build your brush pile close by, so that your plants will reap all the benefits of your pile.

You can also build your pile strategically within eye shot of a window you frequent. That way, when you are sitting or walking by it at home, you’ll be able to look out the window and enjoy the view of the birds, butterflies, and other beauties!

Don’t build them too close to your house or your neighbor’s house.

How to Build:

To build a strong base, lay down large logs criss-crossed. Create runways and spaces big enough for a bunny to fit through. You can also add stones to your base and, if you have any pipes, you can add these to your base too to serve as tunnels.

Pile large branches loosely on top of the base.

Continue building in successive layers Gradually add smaller branches and start creating a denser weave. Make sure to leave open pockets between the layers.

You can plant native flowers and vines near your brush pile. Flowering and/or fruiting vines will not only sprawl over the pile, making it look a little more beautiful, but will also attract hummingbirds — win win!

5 Tips for your Brush Pile:

Typically brush piles are about 4 to 8 feet tall and from 10 to 20 feet in diameter, but you can make yours smaller (or bigger) — it’s up to you!

You can weave evergreen branches into the shelter to provide better cover from snow during the winter months.

Remember to leave those leaves. Leaf layer will provide food and habitat so several wildlife species, and will up your soil quality as well!

If you decide to add plants to your brush, plant native species! Grape vines, honeysuckle, and trumpet creeper will make a nice cover — or how about a boarder of wildflowers? Maybe plant a blueberry bush nearby? Go wild! Just remember to choose native plants!

Inspect the piles about once a year, to make sure everything is going as it should. Remember, rot and decay are not only normal, but a desired part of the process! You’re just checking to make sure the state of these are not SO much that you need to build a new brush pile.

This past week, the first snowfall finally stuck. While the air may be getting frostier, that doesn’t mean forgetting about your rain barrels! You can use your rain barrels throughout the winter to catch snow. As the weather gets warmer, the snow will melt and you can conserve water all through the winter. You can store the snow water to use on your garden for when spring rolls around, but it doesn’t stop there! Have you thought about all the other things you can use it for?

You can use it for outdoor chores!

Washing your car!

Wash the windows on your house!

Cleaning the garden furniture!

Maybe some decoration?

Make a Garden pond!

Refill the bird bath!

You can even bring it inside!

Water your indoor plants!

Flush the toilet! (you’d be surprised how much clean water literally goes down the tubes)

There’s so much you can do, so don’t let that winter snow go to waste!

The cold weather has been kicking in… and kicking us into action on all the fall chores we’ve been putting off! But the good news is, you can put off raking those leaves a little longer. If procrastination alone isn’t enough to keep you away from those leaves, here are a few more good reasons to ditch the rake:

Many creatures rely on Autumn’s lazy gardeners, such as the many species of moth and butterfly pupae that overwinter in leaf layer.

Think of the benefit to your garden those leaves can provide! Letting leaves decompose naturally not only helps soil retain water, but it also leaves behind lots of tasty nutrients for your plants and other garden creatures.

It reduces waste and pollution! It will reduce both yard waste and pollution caused by leaf blowers and artificial fertilizers.

Saves you time and energy! Now that you can skip the raking guilt free, you’ll have more time to spend your days off relaxing!

And remember, if you simply MUST get those leaves up, here are some alternatives:

Create a leaf compost pile!

Save those leaves in a paper bag and use them for compost later in the year!

Give them away to local farms and schools looking for them!

Create a wildlife brush pile! These are super easy and can provide shelter for lots of little creatures that need it.

Check back soon for more advice on how to keep your garden environment and wildlife friendly throughout the chilly seasons!

On Thursday, July 14th, Assembly Row hosted the 3rd Annual Bar Stars! At sunset on the rooftop in the balmy air, the restaurants of The Row competed for the title of bartender supreme. The contest brought the community together for a night of tastiness while raising money to support Groundwork Somerville and Project Smile! Each contender worked to produce delicious and innovative mixed drinks while attendees sampled and evaluated. In Partnership with AC Hotel Station Landing and David’s Tea, Assembly row put together an unforgettable event where nine restaurants competed for the title:

After two rounds of judging, it was Burger Dive for the win! Congratulations to Burger Dive and thank you to Assembly Row for a generous donation (and super sized check!). Not only was it one of our favorite events of the entire season, we had a great time planning with Vanessa and Assembly Row team!

If you didn’t make it this July, be sure to mark your calendar for next year’s Bar Stars and sip for yourself at one of the funnest events of the summer!

]]>0Kalimah Mustafahttp://www.groundworksomerville.org/?p=69662016-08-03T20:48:37Z2016-07-30T09:47:19ZContinued]]>Honey bees are the species of bees that belong to the genus Apis, which are the only kinds of bees that produces true honey — the kind we like to eat. Honey is made mostly of nectar and bee enzymes. As honey bees visit each plant, they are sucking nectar through their tongues and storing it in their honey stomach (that’s right, they have two separate stomachs — one for eating, one for storing nectar). They carry the nectar back to the hive in their honey stomach, where it is passed back and forth from mouth to mouth, mixing with special enzymes, until it becomes a honey-like substance. While still a bit runny, the bees will flap their wings in order to evaporate the excess water in the mixture until it thickens into honey. Then, they will store it in a cell and seal it with beeswax so that it can be stored for later.

Bees use honey as a food source to survive the winter — it’s not all about the nectar though! As bees pass from blossom to blossom, they are also collecting pollen — another food source for bees! The bees wet the pollen and put it in what’s known as their corbicula, or more popularly, pollen-basket. Some of the excess pollen clings to the hair on a bees body, known as pile, which falls of as the bee visits each plant. This is how the honey bees pollinate as they forage.

Did you know that the killer bee is a type of honey bee?

That’s right! The killer bee or, more formally, the Africanized honey bee, comes from Brazil where biologist Warwick E. Kerr was attempting to interbreed a strain of bees that would produce more honey. Kerr housed these bees in apiaries with screens meant to prevent the bees from escaping, but in 1957 there came an accidental release of 26 swarms. The Africanized honey bee is now spread across South, Central, and even parts of North America. The “killer bee” got it’s nickname from being more aggressive than other bees, however the venom of it’s stings are no more potent than the European honey bee, and in truth, not all hives display this type of defensive behavior. While the Africanized bee and the European bee look very similar, Africanized bees tend to be smaller and darker in hue.